There’s a lot of fear around sex, and sex education but sex education helps with being human – it helps our human condition. (1)
Annie Sprinkle has had an illustrious career spanning several decades. She has worn many hats and reinvented herself regularly. A multi-talented and multi-faceted individual, she has been a sex worker, author, performance artist, pornographic artist, AIDS educator and sex-positive feminist – amongst many other roles. She has a PhD in Human Sexuality and defines herself presently as an ‘eco-sexual’. (2)
(((ecosexual (plural ecosexuals) An environmentally conscious person whose adherence to green living extends to their romantic and/or sexual life (particularly their choice of partner).)))
Reading Annie Sprinkle’s biography, (penned by Tom Garettson), you can’t help but be blown away by how much Sprinkle has managed to fit into her 65 years. First working in a massage parlour, Annie then worked as a sex worker and hardcore pornographic actress. (3)
Her most well-known mainstream role was titled‘Deep Inside Annie Sprinkle’ which was the No. 2 highest grossing porn film of 1981. Not only was this film a high earner, it was also a pivotal moment in the porn industry and for feminism in general. The film itself focused on the female orgasm and Sprinkle talked ‘from the heart’ straight to camera. This was a totally new approach for the hardcore genre. (4)
Sprinkle is an explorer of human sexuality in all its many guises. She takes a spiritual, political and artistic approach to all her work and projects which she has undertaken, blurring the division between life and art in the process. Her books, performance art, films, clinics, talks, female empowerment sex classes – in fact all of Annie Sprinkles work is a reflection on who she is as a sexual being and artist. For example, she has single handedly pioneered new genres of sexually explicit film and video. These new genres include edu-porn, post-porn, art porn and feminist erotica. (5)
Nothing slows down this prolific New York Based artist! Sprinkle is married to her partner Beth Stephens. They collaborate artistically as well as personally. Together, they define themselves as eco-sexuals. This new ethos combines sex and ecology in to express an earth loving sexual identity. (6) (7)
There is so much to discover about this talented artist, this article is just the tip of the iceberg! Ever evolving as a human and performer, Sprinkle’s work continues with the project, Documenta 14.
Documenta 14 is a co-creation with her partner Elizabeth Stephens.They premiered their film, “Water Makes Us Wet”, had a visual art exhibit, and gave Ecosex Walking Tours”. (8) Little can stop the prolific output of Sprinkle. She is undoubtedly a modern-day crusader for feminism, sexuality in all its forms and much, much more!
REFERENCES:(2) (3) (4) (5) Garretson, Tom, Anniesprinkle.org (asm), ‘The Sprinkle Story the First Twenty-Five Years’, https://anniesprinkle.org ,(accessed 20th July 2019).
(6)(8) Stephens Elizabeth & Sprinkle, Annie, Sexology.org, ‘Where Art Meets Theory Meets Practice Meets Activism’, http://sexecology.org (accessed 20th July 2019). Stephens, Elizabeth & Sprinkle, Annie , LoveArtLab.org, https://loveartlab.ucsc.edu, (accessed 20th July 2019).
(1)(7)Stephanie, Theobald, ‘Nature is your lover, not your mother: meet ecosexual pioneer Annie Sprinkle,’ The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/may/15/nature-ecosexual-annie-sprinkle-porn-star-queer (accessed 18th August 2019). PHOTO: https://www.facebook.com/anniesprinkled/
